Pete's Walks- Cowleaze Wood, Christmas Common, Studdridge Farm (page 4 of 4)
If you are considering walking this route yourself, please see my disclaimer. You may also like to see these notes about the maps and GPX files.
The bridleway ran between hedge for two or three hundred yards until it reached Bowley's Wood, when it turned half-left and started to descend through the wood. I followed the bridleway steadily downhill, passing three mountain bikers coming the other way - at one point there was a view right out of the wood, across a valley to the field path I'd soon be taking up to Cowleaze Wood. After several hundred yards the bridleway turned right (a private track joined in from the left at this point) and briefly became a bit steeper as it dropped down to reach another of the surfaced drives of the Wormsley estate, not far from Wellground Farm.
Near the start of the bridleway descending through Bowley's Wood
The bridleway descending through Bowley's Wood
The bridleway descending through Bowley's Wood
The bridleway descending through Bowley's Wood
The bridleway descending through Bowley's Wood, near Wellground Farm
Across the drive a bridleway continued, gently rising uphill through a wood named Langleygreen Plantation - the gradient was slightly easier than I remembered (probably because normally when I get here I've walked 4-5 miles further than I had today!) but it did go on for quite a way. Eventually it levelled out, and not too much further on I reached a path crossroads, where I turned left. This path dropped downhill through the wood at a fairly steady gradient.
The start of the path through Langleygreen Plantation
The path through Langleygreen Plantation
The path through Langleygreen Plantation
The path through Langleygreen Plantation. approaching the crossroads where I turned left
The path after I went left at a path crossroads
The path after I went left at a path crossroads
Towards the bottom of the slope, the path left the wood and crossed an empty paddock. It then passed to the left of the garden of Lower Vicar's Farm to reach another Wormsley estate drive. I followed this left for a short distance, then turned right onto a footpath that climbed steadily uphill through a huge empty pasture. Further up the slope I went through a gate, the path continuing uphill through a maize field. This was a long steady slog, but the fine views all around made the effort worthwhile. Near the top of the slope the path entered Cowleaze Wood, and then I just had to follow the path straight on through the wood for about half a mile to return to the car park where I'd started.
The path continuing past Lower Vicar's Farm
The path up to Cowleaze Wood
Looking back from the path up to Cowleaze Wood
Approaching Cowleaze Wood
Cowleaze Wood
Cowleaze Wood
Cowleaze Wood
Cowleaze Wood, approaching the car park
This was a very enjoyable walk, with good scenery to admire almost every step of the way. I thought it was excellent when I did it 20 months ago, and it's just as good in this anti-clockwise direction - certainly one of the best 9-10 mile walks I've done in the Chilterns. There were five 'ups and downs', plus a couple of smaller ones, plenty of woodland walking, with just a few field paths, and as I've already said, good views almost everywhere. I'm sure it's a walk I'll do again sometime.